The Effect of Employee Training and Development as a Human Resource Practice on Productivity - Essay Example

Effect of Employee Training and Development as a Human Resource Practice on Productivity Introduction: This dissertation aims at understanding effects of graduate employee training and development. The dissertation will begin with an over view of the Human resources practice for productivity – training and development. The different types of training and the development methods are discussed as a part of the literature review. Also a detailed understanding of the different methods is discussed. OBJECTIVES, BRIEF RATIONALE: Aims and Objectives: The main objective of this dissertation is to understand the theories that have been studied and discussed over the past years. There have been several theories that have been discussed by a lot of researchers over the years. Emphasis on the different theories and the merits and demerits of the theories will be discussed. Since the aim of the dissertation is to understand the effects of training and development on employee productivity it is essential that a case is taken into consideration. The study conducted in this dissertation uses data from a company – British American Tobacco Ltd. UK., to discuss and understand the effects of training and development on the employees and how the productivity of employees is affected by these human resource practices. Audience: The dissertation focuses on the companies in the United Kingdom and the common practices and trends in the ‘employee training and development’ processes. This dissertation will be of interest to: The Employers who have already implemented the employee training and development processes The Employers who intend to implement the employee training and development processes in their companies The Human Resources departments of various companies and corporate who are actively working on improving the performance and productivity of employees or are preparing proposals to the management on implementing different training and development processes to improve productivity of employees. People conducting research on Employee development and productivity through training – Researchers, Professors, etc.., Human Resource Students of various disciplines Anybody interested in learning about the various training programs and development processes and the merits and demerits Key Issues: The key issues that will be discussed in the dissertation are the effect of training and development programs on employee productivity. The merits and demerits of including the training programs for graduate employees will also be discussed. As the company spends a lot of its resources in training of employees it is essential that the results got from these programs are beneficial for the company. Also a brief discussion about why training programs might not be useful in certain cases will also be discussed. Recommendations for the company will include steps the company can take to ensure positive results in the form of better productivity of employees will also be discussed. The companies website states a lot of different programs that BAT offers for new starters, this will also be discussed in detail to analyze the usefulness and appropriateness of the programs. Other issue that will be discussed is the effectiveness of the theories that have been derived over the past years. A detailed explanation of the different theories will be discussed and an analysis of the theories will be made. Case Study of British and American Tobacco UK ltd.: The company chosen for this dissertation is British American Tobacco UK ltd (BAT). The company is the world’s second largest tobacco group by global market share. BAT has over 300 brands in the portfolio. The company’s brands are wide spread across the world. BAT holds robust position in over 50 markets. BAT was founded in 1902 and within 10 years of the birth of the company, it had become one of the top twelve companies worldwide by market capitalization. The company has had a global presence for over 100 years now and still holds the leadership in most of the markets. The company has had excellent profits over the years. The profits for the year ended 31 December 2007 from operations alone has been £2,905 million. The revenue on one hand has been a whooping £10,018 million and the profits for the year alone have been £2,287 million. The company’s brands are sold in over 180 markets. The brand is wide spread and has about 47 factories in 40 countries which employees a total of 53,907 employees. Over the years since 1902 BAT has seen a number of improvements and expansions and today it has created a benchmark for all the companies in this industry and is by far the best in the industry. The company is lead by Chairman Jan du Plessis since 1 July 2004. The board of directors of the company comprises of all non executive except the chairman (BAT, 2008). The company has paid a lot of attention to ensure the right candidates are selected for every role in the company. The Human resources has been given a very important role in the company and a great emphasis is given to the people of the company. It is seen that most of the employees in this company stay on in the job for years. The companies in this industry work under a great amount of scrutiny and regulation and thus the company’s employees are very carefully selected and undergo a lot of training and development programs and the employees have a truly international career. The company aims at ensuring that every employee has a say on matters and ensures that all employees have a freedom to put forth their views and give feedback to the company to help improve the planning of the company. The company understands the needs of employees and provides employees with the best and most competitive pays. Also the efforts of employees do not go unnoticed and every employee is rewarded for the efforts and hard work. The company ensures that the pay to the employees and the performance demonstrates a clear link. BAT follows different rewarding strategies for the employees. It does not only consider an employee’s tenure in the company but mainly the contribution of the employee to the company. Also there is freedom given to the managers to decide when employees deserve rise in pay and the performances of employees are judged on a small number of key areas. The reward system is very simple and straight forward, it ensures that every employee get regular feedback and there is good communication between all the levels of the organization. BAT has given importance to employees and has ensured that every employee is well trained. Also as mentioned earlier there are a lot of rules and regulations relating to the tobacco industry, hence special care have been taken by the company to ensure that every employee participates in the company within the regulations and every employee requires undergoing training and development programs. PROVENANCE: The details of the study will be discussed within this proposal and a brief introduction to what the dissertation will contain is explained in the next few sections. The two main types of training will be discussed, on-the-job training and off-the-job training. A detailed review focusing on the studies of various authors and researchers like Brown et al. 2001:1, Beardwell et al. 2004: 269, Heery and Noon 2001, Collin 2004, Reid and Barrington 1994, Rosenthal et al 1997, Bratton and Gold, Mick Marchington and Adrian Wilkinson (eds), Irena Grugulis 2007, Rainbird (ed.), etc will be analysed and discussed. Theories like Kirkpatrick’s training evolution model, Adam’s equity theory, Kraiger’s training approach, etc. These theories will be discussed in detail and an analysis of the efficiency of these theories will be made. Area Field Aspect/Topic/ Authors Human Resources Training and Development – effects on employee motivation and satisfaction Brown et al. Beardwell et al. Heery and Noon 2001 Collin 2004 Reid and Barrington 1994, Rosenthal et al 1997, Bratton and Gold, Mick Marchington and Adrian Wilkinson (eds), Irena Grugulis 2007, Rainbird (ed.) Kirkpatrick’s training evolution model, Adam’s equity theory, Kraiger’s training approach RESEARCH DESIGN TO BE FOLLOWED: Research Design: Based on the literature review and the case study the research objectives are drawn both from employers’ and the employees’ perspectives. The research objectives will mainly focus on the best practices for employee training and development and also the effects it has on employees, such as productivity, satisfaction level, etc. A) Research Objectives: Since the main objective of the study is to understand the effects of employee training and development on an employee’s productivity, the research is also based on the same lines. The main objective of the research is to understand the effects of training and development on employee productivity. It is also known that employee productivity is based on the employee satisfaction, thus another important objective of this dissertation will be to study the levels of employee satisfaction in British American Tobacco UK ltd. B) Research Methodology: The research objectives will be categorized into two parts based on the respondents: Employers and Experts General Employees sample In order to conduct a credible research for the objectives that fall under the first category, it is essential to conduct a qualitative research. A questionnaire is prepared based on the research objectives under this category. This questionnaire is then presented a list of employers, HR professionals and experts in the field and an In-Depth interview is conducted. If viable, an in-depth interview will also be conducted with a representative from the HR department of British American Tobacco UK ltd. For the second category, as the research objectives focus on a wider population, it is essential to conduct a quantitative research. A questionnaire is designed based on the research objectives. An appropriate scaling method is used and the dependent and independent variables are fixed based on the objectives. Once the questionnaire is finalized, an online survey is then conducted to a sample of the population. C) Research Analysis: The data is collected from the online survey and the responses are collected and recorded for the in-depth interviews. The in-depth interviews are then analyzed in line with the research objectives and the findings are presented based on the responses from the experts and HR personnel. The data collected from the survey is then analyzed using the SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Studies) software. The SPSS allows easier computation of central tendency measures and also linear regressions. The summaries of the results are then tabulated. D) Findings and Limitations: The research results are analyzed and are compared with the literature that has been presented on the same areas. The experts’ views throw light on the current trends as well as the possible changes and growth in the adoption of training and development programs by the various companies. The satisfaction and motivation levels of the employees are assessed based on the regression results obtained from the quantitative research. The limitations of the research in terms of the objectives, sample size, respondents and other technical aspects are listed to the audience. TIMETABLE: The dissertation is split into two main parts: Literature Review: The literature review for this dissertation should approximately be completed within a month. Research: This would take a relatively longer period to be completed. It involves preparing of questionnaires, getting responses from the sample, after which the data requires to be analysed. Hence this should take approximately 1.5 to 2 months to be completed including the analysis of the data using SPSS. CHAPTER HEADINGS: Chapter 1 – Introduction (explaining the contents of the dissertation, what every chapter will entail) Chapter 2 – Employee Training and Development (This chapter focuses on the different theories of training and development Chapter 3 – Study of British American Tobacco UK Ltd. (This chapter will include the case study of BAT, and focus on the employee training and development for the Graduate Employees). Chapter 4 – Research Methodology (this will include an explanation of the methodology used for the research) Chapter 5 - Analysis of Findings (this chapter will include the research finding and the analysis) Chapter 6 – Conclusion (this chapter concludes the entire dissertation and will include a section recommending the possible further research on the topic) Bibliography Appendices ANTICIPATED LEARNING: Personal development: The essay aims at understanding the effects of training and development programs on employees’ performance. This is a very important aspect of human resources and being an MSc Human resources student this aspect of HR is of great importance. From this essay I will be able to improve my skills as a HR manager in the aspects of employee training and development and will allow me to understand the effects of different training on different employees. It will also improve my people skill and will help me understand the importance of managing resources in an appropriate and orderly manner. Also this essay will help me understand BAT as a company better and the HR policies and company’s training and development processes. The information available for the company is very limited hence it is essential that interviews are conducted. This will help me improve my interviewing skills and will help me be more professional. The research done for the assignment will help me understand the industry on a whole in a deeper sense. Also the research conducted will help me improve on my interviewing skills and help me understand the essential factors to be considered while designing a questionnaire. Ethical Matters What ethical issues might arise in your proposed research? In this section, you indicate that you have considered them explicitly, and have though them through sufficiently to propose a course of action should any such issues arise. Please complete this section with reference to the standard set of Research Ethics Guidelines, issued and discussed during the lectures. You MUST circle YES or NO under each of the FIVE headings below. Have you thought through and resolves any issues concerning: 1. Professionalism (You are sure about the theoretical and methodological standards that apply; you have a plan to protects individual and organisational rights; the work is within your own competence as a student under supervision and complies with any professional and legal standards that apply; acknowledges collaborators where they exist) If you can, please circle YES all is well. If you can’t under ANY of these headings, please circle NO I have a problem AND consult with your tutor AND indicate the issue and how you propose to deal with it on the reverse of this page. 2. Data Collection & Analysis (You have thought through issues of access and sampling; have thought about a suitable research design and ways of avoiding bias due to sex, gender expression, age, disability, race, ethnicity, culture, language, and socio-economic status; have made suitable arrangements for data storage and for maintaining respondent anonymity) If you can, please circle YES all is well. If you can’t under ANY of these headings, please circle NO I have a problem AND consult with your tutor AND indicate the issue and how you propose to deal with it on the reverse of this page. 3. Informed Consent (You have planned how you will inform participants of the nature of the research and correct any misconceptions; giving an explicit opportunity to decline participation without adverse consequences; have thought through any issues of covert observation; anonymised results or contracted permission to waive anonymity; described who will see results; avoided excessive incentives for participation.) If you can, please circle YES all is well. If you can’t under ANY of these headings, please circle NO I have a problem AND consult with your tutor AND indicate the issue and how you propose to deal with it on the reverse of this page. 4. Control of Deception (You have avoided all techniques relying on deception; have explained enough about participation so that consent to participate is genuinely informed and voluntary; have a debriefing session planned should this be required by your research design and approach.) If you can, please circle YES all is well. If you can’t under ANY of these headings, please circle NO I have a problem AND consult with your tutor AND indicate the issue and how you propose to deal with it on the reverse of this page. 5. Interpretation & Reporting of Outcomes (You have considered the factors that might limit the reliability of findings and the accuracy of their interpretation; have considered the possibility of sharing results with the individuals who provided them; know how to attribute all references and quotations appropriately so as to avoid plagiarism; have read the items you cite, except where quoting citations of others by the authors whom you have read). If you can, please circle YES all is well. If you can’t under ANY of these headings, please circle NO I have a problem AND consult with your tutor AND indicate the issue and how you propose to deal with it on the reverse of this page Read More